Commercially produced ice is known in the art. Commercially produced ice is typically built up in layers. Some commercial processes produce cubes by using moulds. In other processes, the ice is formed in a sheet which is subsequently shattered. In either case, heating or thawing is used as part of the stripping process. The heating or thawing decreases the energy efficiency of the ice making process. It also results in the production of ice cubes with wet outer surfaces resulting in ice cubes sticking when placed close together. The “vertical sheet” process produces ice chunks of inconsistent shapes and sizes.
Household refrigerators and freezers having ice-makers similarly employ a heating or thawing process to discharge ice after water is cooled into ice, thus increasing the energy consumption of the ice making process.
It is an object of the present invention to produce ice cubes of consistent shape. It is a further object of the present invention to produce ice cubes having a substantially dry outer surface. It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a stripping process for ice cubes which does not require heat.